The Huntsman: Winter’s War was always going to have an uphill struggle with critics. Most of them didn’t particularly like the first film, Snow White And The Huntsman, and it was very difficult to see the point of making a follow-up. When Winter’s War arrived, it turned out not that many other people could see the point either, as it didn’t exactly set fire to the box office.

That’s almost a shame though, as the rubbish-ness of the first film is undoubtedly a drag on this movie and something it attempts to get around with only partial success. If this was standalone film without that millstone, and if a few structural issues were sorted out, it would have gotten a much reception. [Read more…]

It’s back to the fairytale realm for The Huntsman: Winter’s War, which has just dropped a new trailer. As with previous promos, it’s difficult not to get the feeling you’re watching a live-action, more grown-up version of Frozen, and it’s tough to know whether that was the intention or not.

Here’s the synopsis: ‘The fantastical world of Snow White and the Huntsman expands to reveal how the fates of The Huntsman Eric and Queen Ravenna are deeply and dangerously intertwined. Chris Hemsworth and Oscar® winner Charlize Theron return to their roles in The Huntsman Winter’s War, an epic action-adventure in which they are joined by Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain, as well as director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan. Producer Joe Roth (Maleficent, Alice in Wonderland) once again leads the team in a breathtaking new tale nested in the legendary saga.

‘Long before the evil Queen Ravenna (Theron) was thought vanquished by Snow White’s blade, she watched silently as her sister, Freya (Blunt), suffered a heartbreaking betrayal and fled their kingdom. With Freya’s ability to freeze any enemy, the young ice queen has spent decades in a remote wintry palace raising a legion of deadly huntsmen—including Eric (Hemsworth) and warrior Sara (Chastain)—only to find that her prized two defied her one demand: Forever harden your hearts to love.

‘When Freya learns of her sister’s demise, she summons her remaining soldiers to bring the Magic Mirror home to the only sorceress left who can harness its power. But once she discovers Ravenna can be resurrected from its golden depths, the wicked sisters threaten this enchanted land with twice the darkest force it’s ever seen. Now, their amassing army shall prove undefeatable…unless the banished huntsmen who broke their queen’s cardinal rule can fight their way back to one another.’

The big budget ‘summer’ movie season is starting early this year, with the likes of Batman v Superman on March 25th and The Huntsman: Winter’s War on April 4th. The latter has now released its final official poster, which you can see below.

Here’s the synopsis: ‘Discover the story that came before Snow White in The Huntsman: Winter’s War. Chris Hemsworth and Oscar® winner Charlize Theron return to their roles from Snow White and the Huntsman, joined by Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain.

‘Theron stars as evil Queen Ravenna, who betrays her good sister Freya (Blunt) with an unforgivable act, freezing Freya’s heart to love and unleashing in her an icy power she never knew she possessed. Retreating to a kingdom far to the north, Freya raises an army of Huntsmen as her protectors, with the only rule that no two of them should ever fall in love.

‘As a war for domination escalates between the two queens, the hero standing between them is Freya’s most elite Huntsman, Eric (Hemsworth). Alongside fellow warrior Sara (Chastain)—the only woman who has ever captured his heart—Eric must help Freya vanquish her sister…or Ravenna’s wickedness will rule for eternity.’

There’s no Kristen Stewart in The Huntsman: WInter’s War, as this is what happened before the events of Snow White. And as this new trailer shows, that involves warring sisters, played by Charlize Theron and Emily Blunt.

Here’s the synopsis: ‘Discover the story that came before Snow White in The Huntsman: Winter’s War. Chris Hemsworth and Oscar® winner Charlize Theron return to their roles from Snow White and the Huntsman, joined by Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain.

‘Theron stars as evil Queen Ravenna, who betrays her good sister Freya (Blunt) with an unforgivable act, freezing Freya’s heart to love and unleashing in her an icy power she never knew she possessed. Retreating to a kingdom far to the north, Freya raises an army of Huntsmen as her protectors, with the only rule that no two of them should ever fall in love.

‘As a war for domination escalates between the two queens, the hero standing between them is Freya’s most elite Huntsman, Eric (Hemsworth). Alongside fellow warrior Sara (Chastain)—the only woman who has ever captured his heart—Eric must help Freya vanquish her sister…or Ravenna’s wickedness will rule for eternity.’

After some character posters a couple of days ago (and some new ones you can see below), comes the trailer for the sequel, The Huntsman: Winter’s War. Snow White (Kristen Stewart) is gone, but both Chris Hemsworth and Charlize Theron are back, joined by Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain.

Here’s the synopsis: ‘The fantastical world of Snow White and the Huntsman expands to reveal how the fates of The Huntsman Eric and Queen Ravenna are deeply and dangerously intertwined. Chris Hemsworth and Oscar® winner Charlize Theron return to their roles in The Huntsman Winter’s War, an epic action-adventure in which they are joined by Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain, as well as director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan. Producer Joe Roth (Maleficent, Alice in Wonderland) once again leads the team in a breathtaking new tale nested in the legendary saga.

‘Long before the evil Queen Ravenna (Theron) was thought vanquished by Snow White’s blade, she watched silently as her sister, Freya (Blunt), suffered a heartbreaking betrayal and fled their kingdom. With Freya’s ability to freeze any enemy, the young ice queen has spent decades in a remote wintry palace raising a legion of deadly huntsmen—including Eric (Hemsworth) and warrior Sara (Chastain)—only to find that her prized two defied her one demand: Forever harden your hearts to love.

‘When Freya learns of her sister’s demise, she summons her remaining soldiers to bring the Magic Mirror home to the only sorceress left who can harness its power. But once she discovers Ravenna can be resurrected from its golden depths, the wicked sisters threaten this enchanted land with twice the darkest force it’s ever seen. Now, their amassing army shall prove undefeatable…unless the banished huntsmen who broke their queen’s cardinal rule can fight their way back to one another.’

Snow White And The Huntsman star Kristen Stewart may have been let go (having an affair with the married director of the first movie probably didn’t help her chances of getting the call for the sequel), but Chris Hemsworth returns as the Huntsman and Charlize Theron as The Wicked Queen for The Huntsman: Winter’s War.

And yes, that is a new title, as previously it was just called The Huntsman.

A set of character posters has been released, which also feature Emily Blunt as The Ice Queen and Jessica Chastain as The Warrior, with a trailer promised for Wednesday.

Now a vast amount has been released about the plot, but Variety reports that, ‘Blunt plays Theron’s sister, who flees their kingdom after suffering a betrayal. She gains the ability to freeze any enemy, becoming an ice queen who holes up in a wintery palace. Hemsworth and Chastain play her trusted lieutenants. But they run afoul of their queen when they refuse to follow orders and harden their hearts to love.’

As the trade mag notes, ‘the whole thing sounds like “Frozen” with battle scenes’, and they’re not wrong.

It’s taking a long time to get the follow-up to Snow White & The Huntsman ready for the big screen but it finally seems to be coming together.

Chris Hemsworth is still around – indeed he’s at the centre as the movie is just called Huntsman – and now Deadline reports that Emily Blunt has finalised her deal to play the villain, and that Jessica Chastain is now in talks for the film, although it’s not clear what her role will be.

Last month it appeared Nick Frost wouldn’t be back after being unable to come to terms with Universal, but now it seems he’ll return after all.

Unfortunately we don’t have too many details about what the film will be about, but we do know Cedric Nicolas-Troyan is directing from a screenplay that’s been worked on by the likes of Frank Darabont, Craig Mazin and Evan Spiliotopoulos. An April 2016 release date has been set.

Shawshank Redemption’s Frank Darabont has been working in the world of TV for the past few years on the likes of The Walking Dead and Mob City. However now he may be heading back to the movies as TheWrap reports that Universal wants him to helm the follow-up to Snow White and the Huntsman.

Although TheWrap still calls it Snow White and the Huntsman 2, THR refers to it as a spin-off called The Huntsman. The film will revolve around Chris Hemsworth’s character from the first film, and while Kristen Stewart may pop up as Snow White, her role would be a minor one at best.

Stewart’s involvement in the sequel has been up in the air ever since it was revealed she’d been having an affair with the married director of the first movie, Rupert Sanders. Initially it seemed that while he was out she’d remain, and in December 2012 she confirmed that she was returning. However other reports suggested she wouldn’t. Now it appears at best she’ll get a cameo.

Darabont had been on a shortlist that also included Gavin O’Connor (Warrior) and Andres Muschietti (Mama), but Universal has now decided who they want. However it’s not clear when the film will shoot.

When news of the affair between Snow White And The Huntsman director Rupert Sanders and star Kristen Stewart, it became clear one of them would have to bow out of any sequels. Back in August it appeared it was Stewart who was leaving, with Sanders still attached to direct.

However now it seems that’s reversed, with Radar Online saying that Kristen Stewart is back onboard for the sequel, with Rupert Sanders departing the project. An insider commented, “The script has already been written and production will begin late next year. However, Rupert Sanders definitely won’t be a part of the project. Rupert didn’t want to be a part of it to begin with because he is desperately still trying to save his marriage. The search is still on for a new director.”

While Stewart initially left (or was fired, depending on who you believe) to distance herself from the scandal as much as possible, she’s apparently now keen to reprise her Snow White role. The source also says, “Kristen is extremely concerned about her acting career. Other than the Snow White sequel she isn’t attached to any other projects. There are scripts coming in, but not as many good ones as she would like. It’s distressing to Kristen that Rob (Pattinson) is attached to four separate movies over the next year-and-a-half. Even her Twilight co-stars, Taylor Lautner and Ashley Greene, are more in demand than ever, with both committed to two different movies each. Kristen just hopes that that the fallout over her relationship with Rupert doesn’t hurt her career.”

None of this has been officially announced, so it may well change, but it appears this is the state of play at the moment.